[The Animals Cry] -- It's a bleak record, but we're still celebrating its 40th anniversary. Forty years ago this week – on May 4, 1982 – The Cure released Pornography*, their fourth studio album. At the outset of 1982, The Cure was pretty much at the point of a complete collapse. Substance abuse, depression, and exhaustion from constant touring... it all likely contributed to the palpable gloom of Pornography, which is widely considered their darkest album. At the very least, Pornography does represent the nadir of The Cure's emotional descent, capping off a trilogy of sorts after Seventeen Seconds (1980) and Faith (1981).
Critics were altogether unkind in their reviews. For example, my favorite reviewer, J.D. Considine, wrote: "Pornography comes off as the aural equivalent of a bad toothache. It isn't the pain that irks, it's the persistent dullness." However, the album did well in their native country, peaking at #8 in UK's album chart and staying on the charts for nine weeks. And, in retrospect, fans (and some critics) have come to regard Pornography as a seminal entry in the history of goth rock. While the truth of this record is probably somewhere between failure and masterpiece, I tend to side with those who praise it. Then again, I had the advantage of hindsight because I didn't discover this album until 1986 or 1987.
Pornography's third track, "The Hanging Garden," was the record's sole single, and it was a minor hit, reaching #34 in the UK. For distribution, "The Hanging Garden" was part of a gatefold double pack of 7" singles with a total of four tracks: "The Hanging Garden" and "One Hundred" as Part One, and "A Forest" (Live) and "Killing an Arab" as Part Two. This double pack was titled A Single, but it is usually referred to as "The Hanging Garden" to avoid confusion. "The Hanging Garden" begins with a wonderfully driving drum beat and an accompanying bass riff that bends and dances, almost breathlessly. Although the lyrics are absolutely sombre, and the guitar and keyboard work is somewhat wispy or dreamy, the bass and drums keep the song moving with a sense of dread urgency. This might be the only track on the record in which the instrumentation does not completely overwhelm Robert Smith's voice.
Much of this record feels like a wall of oppressive sound, especially the drums, obscuring the vocals. The drums were a conscious decision. Apparently, drummer Lol Tolhurst played his parts in a huge open space, facilitated by removing all the acoustic dividers from the main room ["Rediscover Pornography" on Udiscover Music]. The vocals, however, are an afterthought, and I've found nothing to account for the buried vocal mix. Perhaps that was by design. Alternatively, it could have been a subconscious result of Smith's state-of-mind at the time. He apparently wanted to create "the ultimate 'fuck off' record" [according to Jeff Apter's 2006 book, Never Enough: The Story of The Cure].
Of course, neither Robert Smith nor The Cure suffered a demise in 1982. They've gone on to record nine more studio LPs, nine EPs, and numerous singles. Their last studio record was released in 2008, but the band still tours; a European tour was announced for the Fall of 2022.
This week's embedded YouTube playlist mimics the eight tracks of the original 1982 release, though I took the liberty of using live versions for two of the tracks. Enjoy!
Flashback: Pornography (May 4, 1982)
Well, that's all till next week. Dedicated 80s-philes can find more flashbacks in the Prophet or Madman archives or via Bookended's 80s Flashback tag. As always, your comments are welcome on today's, or any other, flashback post. And if you like what I'm doing here, please share the link with your friends. If, however, you don't like the flashback, feel free to share it with your enemies.
I'll see you in seven!
*I do hope we don't get too many web 'bots trawling here because of that word.
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